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Let me ask you a question: did you know about a lot of this year’s best horror movies before you saw other fans celebrating them online? I'm talking about movies like Late Night with the Devil, Oddity, and Stopmotion. Given your answer is probably no, that makes it all the more impressive that these smaller releases have beaten big-budget giants in becoming some of the best horror movies of the year.
A lot of them have had plenty in common, with their experimental nature helping them transcend their budget. However, it seems clear to me that a lot of their success can be pointed back to the online horror community shouting about them too. And what better time than Friday the 13th to celebrate these outstanding scary flicks?
Make way big studio movies
Like most horror fans, at the start of every year, I make a note of what movies to keep an eye out for. This year's list consisted of The Strangers remake, Nosferatu, and The First Omen among other big releases. But now, more than halfway through the year, I have to admit that my favorite scary movies of 2024 so far were not even on my radar. It was down to the power of social media, clever marketing tricks, and word of mouth that I first heard about the strange creature feature Oddity or Shudder’s Stopmotion, just to name a few.
When these movies dropped, it was impossible to go on Twitter or TikTok and not see them mentioned. Just after it hit Shudder, Late Night With The Devil was being championed online as being the best-found footage horror movie in years. And fans could not get enough of In a Violent Nature, which broke boundaries by choosing to shoot the movie from the killer’s perspective. In this regard, it is undeniable that this year’s plethora of smaller horrors have absolutely eclipsed big-screen flicks from major studios such as Blumhouse’s Imaginary or Night Swim, and Sony’s Tarot which all, let's face it, kind of flopped. But no movie surprised me more than Longlegs.
The Longlegs phenomenon
No matter how much it made, you have to admit that the biggest horror movie of the year so far is Longlegs. The cultural phenomenon this movie turned out to be is truly incredible. But long before its release, the studio cleverly used the power of social media to get people talking, with cryptic clues and videos being posted to entice fans.
While it's important to note this isn't the kind of low-budget flick we've mentioned so far (hello, Nicolas Cage), there's no denying that word of mouth is what helped make this film as big as it is. You have to acknowledge how amazing it is that a film that few of us ever saw a promotional poster or advertisement for, stirred up so much attention.
This is why fan support and enthusiasm is so important, especially in this genre. In an interview with GamesRadar+, Robert Morgan, director of one of this year’s more experimental horror movies Stopmotion, expressed just how important the horror community’s support is when it comes to releasing more obscure movies. "It's very important," said Morgan, “If you think about making films like this, it's an unusual genre of film, it's kind of, it's out there." It can catapult a film into major success and help it turn into a bigger franchise, just like Terrifier.
The success of the Terrifier franchise
The best this year could be yet to come too, as this Halloween season Damien Leone will release the third film in the gory Terrifier franchise. But Terrifier has very humble beginnings, starting from a short that the filmmaker posted on YouTube. Through crowdsourcing and special funding, the first movie was able to get made which quickly grew a large online following, promoting outside influences to fund a second movie. This October, for the first time, Terrifier will get a wider theatrical release with Terrifier 3 hitting UK and Ireland cinemas too.
But if it wasn’t for the support and push from fans, the Terrifier movies could have been much different. In an interview with Total Film Magazine, Leone revealed that a big studio approached him and tried to remake his movies into watered-down, less gory versions. "They wanted to reboot it for a wider audience," said Leone. "I knew they’d never let me shoot the first 10 minutes of what I wanted to do [in Terrifier 3] so I thought, 'Let’s just stay true to what this franchise is.'"
There is no doubt that the Terrifer franchise wouldn’t be where it is today without the backing of the horror community. This only makes me more excited for what’s to come too. During the last few months of this year, we have JT Mollner’s Strange Darling and action-horror Azrael starring Ready or Not’s Samantha Wearing. Maybe the latest Disney-inspired slasher, The Mouse Trap, will blow us away too.
Who knows what kind of surprise lies next? I for one can't wait to see this genre keep breaking through in new and exciting ways. That is why it is so important that we as moviegoers keep on supporting smaller releases and continue to give filmmakers who continue to push boundaries the spotlight they deserve.
For more scares, here's all the upcoming horror movies on the way in 2024 as well as our round-up of the best horror movies of all time.
